Type Of Concrete For Basement Floor

Flooring types you need to avoid in basements.

Type of concrete for basement floor.

The first decision is deciding what type of concrete works best for your project. If you feel that despite all precautions the basement floor may get wet put down 2 by 4 inch sleepers cover with plastic and then install the plywood as the subfloor. Choose whether you need ready mix concrete delivered or plan to mix your own from a dry mix. The chosen fiber material type should be a synthetic form such as olefin face fiber.

I need to warn you about some flooring types you would want to avoid in the basement. Sheet vinyl flooring creates a nearly seamless water impervious surface on your basement floor always a good thing where moisture might be involved. Vinyl flooring also known as resilient flooring ranks with concrete and ceramic tile as one of the better basement flooring options vinyl flooring comes in both sheet or tile plank form and there is a subtle difference. The system is made of interlocking plastic tiles that are elevated on grids.

Any carpet fiber style from plush to loop can be applied to a concrete floor. Nearly all basements have either concrete floors or concrete subflooring. Unlike exterior sealants that penetrate the concrete with uv protection while still allowing breathability interior types create a film over the top. It s not designed to be used with a nail down type of flooring.

The best interior concrete sealer is a film forming sealant like epoxy or acrylic. Carpeting a basement isn t impossible and if you like the soft feel of carpet fibers it may very well be the answer for you. For ceramic tile nail cement boards to the concrete floor with concrete nails so they won t move then apply mastic tile and grout. That said even if your basement is unusually dry some of the alternatives to basement carpet are likely to be cheaper flooring installations.

Manufactured in planks with interlocking edges basement suitable engineered wood flooring comes with a durable factory applied finish. Always install basement carpet on top of a vapor impervious subfloor this will raise the temperature of the floor in winter make your carpet more pleasant to walk on and most importantly prevent humid air from cozying up to the concrete and triggering mold growth. Sealed and polished concrete make unsurpassed floors for your basement. Sheet vinyl flooring.

Although some manufacturers sell engineered wood flooring that can go down over a concrete floor it s better to install this type of flooring over a subfloor. And i will warn you that some sites actually recommend these floors clearly they are written by freelance writers and not flooring experts. The grids create an air space below the floor that dissipates moisture and keeps your basement flooring warmer than if it s in direct contact with concrete.